Light gun titles come as a pleasant surprise to the market because there aren’t many to begin with. But Vampire Night is as bland as they come. The cheesy plot and acting come with gun game territory but the horrendous gameplay doesn’t do much to make this game a keeper.
Developed by Namco and Wow Entertainment, Vampire Night involves an evil vampire and his minions who are bent on destroying the land. Two vampire hunters (you and a friend) can take on the vamp team to save everyone in town.
VN has a few modes to keep you busy – Arcade, Special, and Training. Special Mode is the Arcade Mode with mission elements. Players can earn silver to buy and equip better weapons to play with. It doesn’t add a whole lot to the package, but it’s nice to have.
There are a total of 6 missions in VN to make for a pretty lengthy gun game. Each level takes you through some pretty dark realms at a full 60 fps, but the plain textures and low poly models make the game look very basic.
The whole package wouldn’t be that bad if it weren’t for the slow plodding pace of VN. Enemies pop out at a slow pace and the game doesn’t keep the action moving from target to target. Another gripe is that enemies don’t react to bullets too well. There aren’t chunks of flesh or really snappy movement to let players feel like they’re doing good damage. Players that get to boss fights will notice that the majority of shots won’t register hits – only when the game allows for it.
There are some unintentionally funny moments in VN that’ll make the game worth it for players who love the cheesiness. At one point the girl you have to save is about to fall into a chasm and keeps teetering off balance for a good 20 seconds while you shoot her to safety. The voice acting is pretty bad, but it makes for some good laughs.
If you really need a gun-game fix Vampire Night can feed your hunger, but you’ll be lookin’ for a better meal soon after.
